Breakaway
Breakaway was a game show where six contestants could win small amounts of money by working as a team, or someone could "break away" (hence the name of the show), in order to win a large amount of money for themselves. Gameplay Series 1 The game was played on two parallel paths laid out along the studio floor, each consisting of 30 steps. The white main path was wide enough to accommodate all six contestants, while the narrow red "breakaway" path could hold only two. Seven categories were displayed at the start of the game, and the contestants were given a chance to move onto the breakaway path (see "Breaking away" below). If no one did so, one of the categories was chosen at random and a question was asked to the entire team. They had 15 seconds to discuss it and select one member to move forward onto the next step of the main path, and that contestant had to respond for the team. If the answer was correct, £100 would be added to the team jackpot and the other members would step forward as well. If the answer was incorrect, the responding contestant had to step back and the jackpot was reset to zero. After every third correct answer, the current category was discarded and a new one was chosen in its place. Once all seven categories had been used, all remaining questions were general knowledge with a 30-second time limit. If the team reached the end of the main path, each member would receive an equal share of the jackpot. Breaking away At certain points during the game, the contestants were offered a chance to "break away" from the team and attempt to win the entire jackpot for themselves. These "break points" occurred immediately at the beginning, then after every third step through #27, and finally after step #29. Up to two contestants could occupy the breakaway path at any given time. If it was empty when the team reached a break point, the members were given five seconds to signal whether they wanted to break away, by pressing the buzzers they carried with them. The first to do so (if any) would move onto the breakaway path and could, at their discretion, invite one team member to join them and assist; the invited member could accept or decline. If a single contestant reached a break point, they could invite a team member to join them. If two contestants reached a break point together, the game would continue normally. If a contestant broke away at the start of the game, £1,000 was added to the jackpot and that contestant would choose the first category. A contestant on the breakaway path had to answer all questions on their own, with no help except from their partner (if there was one), and added £300 to the jackpot for each correct answer. A miss put them in danger of immediate elimination (see "Lives" below). If a solo breakaway contestant reached the end of the path, they won the entire jackpot; if two reached it together, each won half the money. If the breakaway path became empty, the rest of the team would move up to the last step reached and continue the game, earning £100 per correct answer until/unless another member decided to break away. If only two contestants remained in the game when a break point was reached, and both were on the breakaway path, then the one who entered it later was eliminated. If all six contestants were eliminated from the game, no one won any money. Lives After every third step through #15, the contestants had a chance to win a "life" by identifying a person, place, or thing based on clues given by the host. Contestants could buzz-in at any time; an incorrect answer locked them out of the rest of the question. The contestant who responded correctly could either receive a life from the host or steal one from someone else, if there were any available. The life question was played before the contestants were offered a chance to break away, and the contestant who answered it correctly would choose the next category after that decision had been made. Lives were used as insurance against elimination on the breakaway path, as follows: *If a single contestant missed with no lives, he/she was immediately eliminated, and the rest of team would move up to that position. *If a single contestant missed with lives, he/she would lose one life, and remain in the game. *If two contestants missed, each with lives, one of them would lose a life, based on team decision. *If two contestants missed and only one of them had lives, the team would decide to either eliminate the contestant with no lives or take a life from the one who had them. *If two contestants missed and they both had no lives, one of them was eliminated, based on team decision. Eliminated contestants would leave the game with no winnings. Series 2 A second series began on 8 October 2012, with a few rule changes from Series 1. *The path was shortened to 25 steps, with break points at the start and after every third step through #24. *Six categories were in play, each used for three of the first 18 steps, followed by general knowledge for the last seven. *Correct answers on the breakaway path added £400 to the jackpot. *If a contestant chose to break away at the start of the game, no money was added to the jackpot. *Lives could be earned only after steps #3, #6, #9, and #12, and contestants could no longer steal lives from one another. *If the team missed a question on the main path, any member who had at least one life could sacrifice it (by pressing their buzzer within five seconds) to prevent the jackpot from being reset to zero. The 20th and final episode of the series, broadcast on 2 November 2012, was a Champion of Champions game, with the six top winners of the series returning to try and win another £10,000. Category:General Knowledge Quiz Category:Decision Making Category:BBC Shows Category:2012 premieres Category:2012 endings